At a Glance

On an adventure by land and sea on Boston’s North Shore, discover the stunning beauty of Cape Ann as you explore its quaint harbors, artistic charm and picturesque villages. Aboard a lobster boat, see a lobsterman hoist his catch from chilly seawaters. Learn about the famous Gloucester fishing fleet. Experience the Rocky Neck art colony and view seascapes created by Winslow Homer and Fitz Henry Lane, who called Cape Ann home. At the Essex Shipbuilding Museum, let craftsmen guide you through the history of master shipbuilding. Bite into a mouthwatering fried clam. Experience a whale watch, learn about the witch trials in historic Salem and pass by gilded mansions on the shores of Marblehead and Manchester-by-the-Sea.

Best of all, you'll ...

Voyage on Cape Ann's vibrant shoreline and a tidal river on five distinctive boats as you inhale salt air, marvel at lighthouses and view the unique wildlife attracted to the rugged coast.

Experience a whale watch, boating three miles to Stellwagen Bank National Marine Sanctuary in hopes of spotting a finback, minke or humpback breaching the waters.

Sail on one of Essex’s iconic schooners, learning from the captain about the construction of this magnificent wooden vessel.

Featured Expert

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Jim McAllister

Jim McAllister is a Salem historian, photographer, author and teacher, and serves as a historic consultant to the City of Salem and the Hawthorne Hotel. A graduate of Stonehill College, his photographs of Salem have appeared in numerous publications, and he is the author of “Salem: From Naumkeag to Witch City” and co-author of “Salem: Cornerstones of a Historic City.” Jim has appeared on both the “History Channel” and “Home and Garden TV.”

Leanne Robinson

Jim McAllister

Suggested Reading List

View 4 books

The Hungry Ocean

by Linda Greenlaw

She's smart, hard-working and good at what she does, though sometimes she wishes she had a life. Greenlaw is captain of the Hannah Boden, sister ship to the Andrea Gail, the sword-fishing boat whose disappearance was described with agonizing verisimilitude in Sebastian Junger's bestseller, The Perfect Storm. Greenlaw tells a comparatively quotidian tale, "the true story of a real, and typical, sword-fishing trip, from leaving the dock to returning." Not trying to compete with Junger's operatic tale of death on the high seas, Greenlaw deals with stormy personalities rather than with bad weather. She rounds out the story with her gimlet-eyed description of a captain's biggest headache after nature itself: the crew. Racism, drug use, baffling illnesses: these are all elements of a 30-day journey for six people crammed aboard a 100-ft. boat designed less for human comfort than to carry the 50,000 pounds or more of fish it will eventually take on. But Greenlaw picks her sailors carefully and, through her own example, inspires a fierce loyalty among the men such as the one who extracted his own abscessed tooth rather than return to shore ("In my experience," she notes, "very few men are willing to pull their own teeth"). Greenlaw's narrative should foster an abiding respect in anyone who has tossed a swordfish steak on the grill, and it is certain to induce jaw-dropping admiration among personnel managers everywhere. (Publishers Weekly)

Lone Voyager

by Joseph Garland

Like countless Gloucester fishermen before and since, Howard Blackburn and Tom Welch were trawling for halibut on the Newfoundland banks in an open dory in 1883 when a sudden blizzard separated them from their mother ship. Alone on the empty North Atlantic, they battled towering waves and frozen spray to stay afloat. Welch soon succumbed to exposure, and Blackburn did the only thing he could: He rowed for shore. He rowed five days without food or water, with his hands frozen to the oars, to reach the coast of Newfoundland. Yet his tests had only begun.
So begins Joe Garland's extraordinary account of the hero fisherman of Gloucester. Incredibly, though Blackburn lost his fingers to his icy misadventure, he went on to set a record for swiftest solo sailing voyage across the Atlantic that stood for decades. Lone Voyager is a Homeric saga of survival at sea and a thrilling portrait of the world's most fabled fishing port in the age of sail. (Product description)

The Perfect Storm

by Sebastian Junger

Meteorologists called the storm that hit North America's eastern seaboard in October 1991 a "perfect storm" because of the rare combination of factors that created it. For everyone else, it was perfect hell. In The Perfect Storm, author Sebastian Junger conjures for the reader the meteorological conditions that created the "storm of the century" and the impact the storm had on many of the people caught in it. Chief among these are the six crew members of the swordfish boat the Andrea Gail, all of whom were lost 500 miles from home beneath roiling seas and high waves. Working from published material, radio dialogues, eyewitness accounts, and the experiences of people who have survived similar events, Junger attempts to re-create the last moments of the Andrea Gail as well as the perilous high-seas rescues of other victims of the storm.
Like a Greek drama, The Perfect Storm builds slowly and inexorably to its tragic climax. The book weaves the history of the fishing industry and the science of predicting storms into the quotidian lives of those aboard the Andrea Gail and of others who would soon find themselves in the fury of the storm. Junger does a remarkable job of explaining a convergence of meteorological and human events in terms that make them both comprehensible and unforgettable. (Amazon.com)

The Last Fish Tale

by Mark Kurlansky

Starred Review. Bestselling author Kurlansky (Cod; The Big Oyster) provides a delightful, intimate history and contemporary portrait of the quintessential northeastern coastal fishing town: Gloucester, Mass., on Cape Anne. Illustrated with his own beautifully executed drawings, Kurlansky's book vividly depicts the contemporary tension between the traditional fishing trade and modern commerce, which in Gloucester means beach-going tourists. One year ago, a beach preservation group enraged fishermen by seeking to harvest 105 acres of prime fishing ground for sand to deposit on the shoreline. Wealthy yacht owners compete with fishermen for prime dockage, driving up prices. Fishermen also contend with federal limits on their catches in an effort to maintain sustainable fisheries. But while cod are protected from extinction, the fishermen are not. Some boats must go 100 or more miles out to sea—a danger for small boats with few crew members. Tragedies abound, while one, that of the swordfish boat Andrea Gail, documented by Sebastian Junger in A Perfect Storm, brought even more tourists to Gloucester. (Publishers Weekly)

Activity note: Due to the amount of boat activities included in this program, time and dates of activities are subject to change depending on tides and weather. Some activities may be substituted for others in the situation of inclement weather or ocean/river conditions. Depending on tides, ramps for embarking and disembarking vessels may be steep.

Afternoon: REGISTRATION: After you have your room assignment, come over to the Road Scholar desk to register with the program staff, pick up your welcome packet containing your name-tag, up-to-date schedule that reflects any last-minute changes, and other important information. If you arrive late, please ask for your packet when you check in. ORIENTATION: The Group Leader will greet everyone and lead introductions. We will review the program theme, the up-to-date Daily Schedule and any changes, discuss safety guidelines, emergency procedures including contact numbers for key staff, roles and responsibilities, and answer any questions you may have. We have set aside some free time in the schedule for your personal independent exploration. Please be aware that program activities, schedules, and personnel may need to change due to local circumstances. In the event of changes, we will alert you as quickly as possible. Thank you for your understanding.

Dinner: Catered Buffet Dinner at the hotel from a local family-owned restaurant.

Evening: At leisure.

DAY

2

Schooner Cruise, Rocky Neck Artist Colony, Journey Cape Ann

Rockport

B,L,D

Rockport Inn & Suites

Activity note: Walking up to 1/2 mile at a time on pavement and some uneven surfaces. Walk 50 yards on pavement from motor coach to dock. Walk up a marine ramp with hand rails to wooden dock, walk five steps up and two steps down over gap to board boat. There is a bathroom on board, but it is down a steep flight of wooden steps so using the restroom on land before the boat departs is highly recommended. Schooner has sails and wooden benches.

Breakfast: Continental breakfast at the hotel.

Morning: Cruise on the Thomas E. Lannon, a classic schooner. Picture yourself relaxing on the deck of this beautiful 65- foot schooner as she sails out of Gloucester harbor on a light southwesterly breeze. Enjoy a two hour sail and get a taste for what it was like to sail on a fishing schooner a hundred years ago. Help the crew raise the sails or just sit back and take in the sights and sounds of Gloucester's coastline.

Lunch: Enjoy lunch in Rocky Neck.

Afternoon: After lunch, enjoy a historical art walk with a local expert through the Rocky Neck artist colony. Walk in the footsteps of Winslow Homer, Fitz Henry Lane, Edward Hopper and a host of other pioneering American artists, and see first hand the iconic land and seascapes that gave rise to their illustrious artistic output. Following the art walk, board your motor coach for a journey around Cape Ann. This charming 2 hour drive will encompass some of the region's most stunning vistas, including Gloucester's "back shore", the winding wooded roads of Lanesville and Annisquam, the cluttered, colorful Gloucester waterfront, the famous Rocky Neck and Rockport art colonies, and the famed Gloucester Fisherman Statue. Enhancing the tour experience are tales of early settlers and fishermen, famous artists, the inventors Clarence Birdseye and John Hays Hammond, and weird goings-on in Dogtown.

Dinner: Enjoy a lobster dinner in the historic seaside town of Rockport.

Evening: At leisure.

DAY

3

Cruise on the Essex River, Essex Shipbuilding Museum

Rockport

B,L,D

Rockport Inn & Suites

Activity note: Walk along a paved ramp to a floating dock, step over a gap to board the boat. There are padded seats on the boat.

Breakfast: Continental breakfast at the hotel.

Morning: Cruise on the Essex River, located in the village of Essex, Massachusetts, one of the four communities that comprise Cape Ann, along with Gloucester, Rockport and Manchester by the Sea.

Lunch: Ninety-nine years ago on July 3rd, 1916, Lawrence "Chubby" Woodman, at the humorous suggestion of a friend, fried up a few clams at his roadside stand in Essex, Massachusetts and the original fried clams were born. Try this delicious New England classic at lunch today at Woodman's. (other options available)

Afternoon: Learn about the history of Essex's shipbuilding industry. The museum was established in 1976 as part of the town's observation of the American Revolutionary Bicentennial. Its primary purpose was to provide Essex families a local repository for their ancestors' shipbuilding artifacts and to stem the tide of artifacts that were going to other museums, being sold to private collectors, or simply being destroyed. Its collections include over 7,000 rare shipbuilding artifacts, photographs, tools, documents, builder's half-models and rigged ship models. Many of these items have come from attics, basements and barns in Essex.

Dinner: Catered Buffet Dinner at the hotel from a local family-owned restaurant.

Evening: Tonight’s evening program is an entertaining talk by local historian and storyteller, Jim McAllister.

DAY

4

Cruise historic Salem Harbor, Free Time

Rockport

B,L

Rockport Inn & Suites

Activity note: Walk 50 yards on pavement from motor coach to dock. Walk on a gangplank with hand rails to dock (depending on tide the gangplank may be level or downhill). Walk 25 yards on a wooden dock to the boat, then step over gap to board boat.

Breakfast: Continental breakfast at the hotel.

Morning: Depart Rockport for historic Salem, established in 1626. Enjoy a narrated cruise that brings Salem Sound to life through an informative yet laid-back narration. This is not a recording so feel free to ask questions whenever. As we cruise by the beautiful shorelines of Salem, Marblehead, Beverly, Manchester-By-The-Sea and the Misery Islands you’ll learn of town history, the boom and bust of the local maritime industry, ocean life, historic landmarks and of course today’s latest gossip on all those multi-million dollar estates.

Lunch: Enjoy lunch on the waterfront in Salem

Afternoon: Take this opportunity for personal independent exploration to see and do what interests you most. The Group Leader will be happy to offer suggestions and give directions.

Dinner: This meal has been excluded from the program cost and is a chance for you to choose what local fare you enjoy most. You might dine in Salem, Gloucester, Rockport or one of Cape Ann's other beautiful towns. All are accessible by the MBTA rail system.

Evening: At leisure.

DAY

5

Whale Watch, Lecture Maritime Life

Rockport

B,L,D

Rockport Inn & Suites

Activity note: Must be able to embark and disembark vessels using ramps and/or stairs.

Breakfast: Continental breakfast at the hotel.

Morning: While on a whale watch, you'll learn about whales from our qualified naturalists, and have the opportunity to interact one-on-one with researchers working as trained crew members onboard the vessel. See real whale artifacts, and even participate in plankton tows, water visibility analysis, and temperature measurements.

Lunch: Boxed Lunches aboard the whale watch to enjoy at your leisure

Afternoon: Enjoy a lecture on local maritime life.

Dinner: Farewell buffet dinner at the hotel. Catered by a local restaurant.

Evening: Following dinner delve into the maritime stories of New England with Jim McAllister.

DAY

6

Take a Gloucester Harbor Cruise, Lunch, and Departure

Rockport

B,L

Activity note: Need to be able to climb 2-3 stairs to embark and disembark vessel.

Breakfast: Continental breakfast at the hotel.

Morning: Have you ever wondered how lobsters are harvested? On this 1-1/4 hour exploration and demonstration, you'll learn all about lobsters and lobstering.

Lunch: Boxed Lunches available to enjoy on your journey home.

Meals

14 Meals

5 Breakfasts

5 Lunches

4 Dinners

The following choices may be available when requested in advance: Gluten Free, Low Fat, Low Salt, Vegetarian

Lodging

Lodgings may differ by date. Select a date to see the lodgings specific to that date.

The Rockport Inn & Suites, with its extensive renovation is the largest hotel in Rockport, MA. Features include a brand new indoor pool and spa, tennis courts, fitness room and 32” Flat Panel HDTV’s. Guests can enjoy a walk to beaches and downtown Rockport, where shopping, art galleries and beaches await you. Rockport is known as a community rich in the arts, including Rockport Chamber Music Festival and Motif #1, the most painted building in the world. You can pick up the local Trolley in season and take it to town, the beaches or to the “T”. Whale watching, deep sea fishing, state parks, museums and festivals are plentiful in this area and will keep families busy for days.

Another wonderful Road Scholar program! We LOVED it. We got to experience a different water vessel every day! Schooner, lobster boat, whale watching tour boat, etc.. The accommodations were excellent, the location was perfect, close enough to the town to walk or take the trolley shuttle located near the resort. Ruth was friendly and helpful and a complete professional! She always made sure to get to know each participant and keep us informed.

The New England Maritime Sampler whet my appetite for more of Cape Ann and the delights of the history, food and art that is unique to this little corner of the country. The Road Scholar program is an excellent exploration: Well planned and organized by knowledgeable and experienced people. My fellow scholars were friendly and curious; a great group that enhanced the journey.

The trip that I just took was my first trip through Road Scholar. I live in New Bedford, MA which is within driving distance from Cape Ann, so I did not have to fly anywhere, but had I had to fly in order to participate, I absolutely would have. The five cruises that were included with the program were above and beyond my expectations and I enjoyed the experiences thoroughly. I would highly recommend this tour and the group leader that I had to anybody interested in such a trip. I would like to sincerely thank Road Scholar for this wonderful opportunity and I hope that I will participate in more Road Scholar programs in the future.